How would you create a hole in this face?
If you can afford the polygons generated by subdivision-surface modelling, there are a lot of advantages in keeping the initial poly-count as low as possible, and modelling the hole in the flat...

... working with geometry something like the above.

Inset region
Slide some edges about to make a vaguely circular region of the inset
Shipped add-on, Loop Tools &gt; Circle
Inset again, and delete the hole
Cut in half, maybe make a cut or two to get rid of the poles created by the insets, and slide verts for better flow.

Now you're all set up to modify on the stack:


Mirror in X and Y
Solidify outwards
Bevel by angle, to hold the..
..Subdivision Surface.

The result is a handle with only 25-odd faces to look after, making it easy to adjust. You can change the size of the holes, the depth and curvature of the handle, and of its rounded ends.. all sorts, with simple selections and moves.
Personally, I would even model this way for low-poly; applying the modifiers, and knocking out loops where that does not damage the curvatures too much.